Australia Introduces First Standalone Cybersecurity Law
The Australian government has introduced the country’s first standalone cybersecurity law to Parliament.The new legislation aims to better protect citizens and organizations against a heightened geopolitical and cyber threat environment. The Cyber Security Bill 2024 covers a range of areas, including mandating minimum cybersecurity standards for IoT devices and mandatory ransomware reporting for critical infrastructure organizations. Additionally, the legislation will establish a Cyber Incident Review Board to conduct post-incident reviews into significant cybersecurity incidents and a ‘limited use’ obligation that restricts how incident information provided to the National Cyber Security Coordinator can be used and shared with other government agencies. The package will also progress and implement reforms under Australia’s Security of Critical Infrastructure (SOCI) Act 2018. This includes provisions to simplify information sharing across industry and government and enhancing governmen...